For a start, what actually qualifies as a Dalek story?

Its got a Dalek in it.

They also make a passing appearance inThe War Games.

IsFrontier In Spacestrictly a Dalek story, or were they just guest stars?

To a casual fan,Doctor Whoand the Daleks are inexorably linked.

Some people even assume they appear in every episode.

If they were reading newspapers during the 2005-2008 period, its hardly surprising.

But, in reality, there have only been 22 complete Dalek tales.

And thats including the one were about to see.

Some have been amongst the greatest drama the show has ever produced.

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Join me as I take a trip through yesteryear.

Trying to put a date on Dalek stories that should have a category all of its own…

10.

A human spacecraft has also been downed, and so, of course, has the TARDIS.

The alternative was, of course, extermination.

For the first time, the Daleks were using negotiation rather than slaughter to achieve their objectives.

The Mechanoids, from Mechanus.

The story itself is utterly bonkers.

Which the real Doctor then disables with his walking stick.

That would be one way to describe the 5th Doctors solitary dance with the Daleks.

That would be another.

Its powerful and compelling, but so relentlessly grim that its hard to call it enjoyable.

Whys it included here?

Children firmly back behind sofas.

Yes, there were far too many of the Doctors companions featured.

Yes, the ending was dreadful and damaged the character of Donna.

But think of everything that went before it!

The Daleks, once more, are unstoppable and recognised as an undefeatable foe.

They know theyre finished.

The Doctor, again, cant stop them.

Even a half human clone of the Doctor cant stop them.

This time, you see, theyve learned a lesson.

Youve got to give them credit for scale of ambition.

All this and Bernard Cribbins shooting a Dalek in the eye with a paint gun.

The machine itself tampers with stars.

The Daleks want to use it as a weapon.

It would be impossible to compile this list and leave out the story where it all started.

Everything that has happened since takes root here.

Looking back, its difficult to ascertain where, chronologically, this fits into the Dalek timeline.

Nearly 50 years later we know better.

A proper TV legend had been born.

This one was a surprise.

As in, Terry Nation, the man who came up with the concept of the Daleks.

Im not implying that Terry Nation was Davros.

However, it wasnt to be.

All the way through this series, the Doctor had been stalked by the words Bad Wolf.

At this stage, he genuinely believed that the Daleks were dead.

The realisation that he had failed, and an army of half a million still remained, crushed him.

From a story point of view, this is the Daleks in their ascendancy.

They can fly freely through space.

They devastate Earth in a matter of minutes.

They even track down and kill lovely Lynda-with-a-Y, whom the Doctor had taken under his wing.

Captain Jack cant stop them.

The Doctor himself, by the end, is powerless.

To add to the sense of horror that permeates throughout the episode, these Daleks arent pure.

The Emperor has created them from discarded humans.

To quote him: We waited here in the dark space, quietly infiltrating the systems of Earth.

Harvesting the waste of humanity.

The prisoners, the refugees, the dispossessed, they all came to us.

They were pulped, sifted, purged.

If that aint evil, folks, I dont know what is.

Back in 1966, the producers ofDoctor Whohad a problem.

The Doctor had regenerated for the first time.

How to do that?

Send for the Daleks.

A pivotal moment in the history of the series, the Daleks here are scheming and conniving.

Their ship crash-landed and they rely on the assistance of a human scientist to reactivate them.

Its difficult to emphasise how exciting this, as a television moment, was five years ago.

The press went to town with it, and it didnt disappoint.

Until the Doctor turns up.

The scene where it floats up the stairs is a triumph (ELEVATE!

), but the real beauty of the script is its standoff with the Doctor.

Both believing themselves to be the last of their race.

Both alone in the universe.

Ultimately, Rose is the key to stopping it.

No wonder it goes a little off the rails shortly afterwards.

Thats commitment to your cause.

The prequel to the Daleks, this episode tackles their backstory and where they came from.

Then stripped them of all pity, empathy and compassion.

The Daleks were born.

So, thats the legacy thatVictory Of The Daleksmust attempt to live up to this Saturday.

What do we think of its chances?